- 2005 edition, 242 pages
- Published by Hodder Moa
- Hardcover with dust jacket, black boards
- Very good condition, minor shelf wear/fading to dust jacket. Minor cover creases
- Signed copy
Colour photo illustrated. Anton Oliver and candour go together. There have been few more open and honest characters in New Zealand rugby; few that have been more widely respected, if not admired, especially by players throughout New Zealand and elsewhere.
But it is true, too, that some within the game have seen hims as an enigmatic figure; on the one hand the archetypal rugby hard man - giving no quarter and asking for none - and on the other, as an individual with sensitivities and concerns for the well-being of others, and a willingness to assit and lead, that go beyond the call of duty.
In Inside, Oliver and co-author Brian Turner explore and frankly discuss Oliver's roller-coaster, at times charged, career. Oliver speaks movingly and with disarming and affecting honesty of his relationships with others, including the tragic and sad loss of close friends such as Mark Parker, killed in the Bali bombing, and Gordon Hunter, the quirky and warm-hearted Otago coach. Also, he offers insights and opinions on his experiences in the All Blacks, first as a young, somewhat naive player, later as captain.
At the centre of the book is Oliver's take on matters such as 'player power' and his relationships with various coaches, especially the tempestuous period under Laurie Mains a the Highlanders in 2002-03. And while Oliver is not afraid to criticise, and looks to analyse, he is also frequently self-critical and does not spare himself. His accounts of the 1999 World Cup campaign, tours to France, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Argentina, with coaches Hart, Smith, Gilbert, Mitchell and Deans, are often startling and, at times, riveting.
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